West Bromwich Building Society Tracker Margins Legal Action
Are you affected by the West Brom Tracker Rate Hike?
If your mortgage account number begins with the number 8 you are highly likely to be one of the unlucky 41% of the mortgage customers of the West Bromwich building Society with a West Bromwich Mortgage Company account affected by the 1.9% increase in your tracker margin rate. However, if you arranged your mortgage directly with West Bromwich Building Society (i.e. not via a broker) or before 2006 the chances are that your account number will begin with the number 9 and you are not affected – YET!!! West Brom will give no assurances that mortgages with account numbers beginning with the number 9 will not be affected at some point in the future.
OUR INTENDED CLASS ACTION LITIGATION OVERVIEW
The reasons we started this campaign are very simple:-
1) We believe the actions of West Brom are immoral
2) We believe the actions of West Brom are unlawful, i.e. they have no legal grounds to increase their tracker rate margins
3) We have no wish to subsidise other areas of the West Bromwich Building Society business model
4) We are fearful of other lenders following suit if West Brom are allowed to get away with this
Mark Smith (Barrister-At-Law) said …
“Representative actions, where one person starts a case representing many others, who all want the answer to a legal question from a court such as ‘is this contract enforceable against me?’ but are not seeking damages. All those who sign up to the action will get the benefit of the win, but they do not have to start their own cases, as they are ‘represented’ by the lead claimant.
The only people who will definitely benefit from success in the case are those who have signed up. There will be no free rides. Any others will have to fight their own corners individually, either alone or with legal help (which will inevitably cost significantly more than the group case).”
We will NOT settle on any basis.
We have a moral duty to do what is right for those who support the values upon which this campaign was started. Our promise to all who support these values is that we will not sell out on you at any price. We will continue to fight this injustice and we will fight any other lender who tries to follow suit.
Are you with us?
This discussion thread is now closed – we’re off to Court!
To link to the new discussion please CLICK HERE
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Member Since October 2013 - Comments: 19
10:09 PM, 23rd November 2013, About 12 years ago
Martin Lewis ( Agent )
http://www.thehandbook.com/celebrities/martin+lewis
Member Since November 2013 - Comments: 118
10:14 PM, 23rd November 2013, About 12 years ago
If we could get Martin Lewis on board, it wouldn’t be so much another string to our bow as it would be a Bazooka! Trust me, when this guy gets behind a campaign, sphinchters in bank boardrooms tend to pucker up. If anyone can find a way of getting hold of him, he’d be worth his weight in gold to our little campaign.
Come to think of it, given that he sold his website MoneySavingExpert for a reported £87 million, he’s probably worth more than his weight in gold.
The link below is worth a read to appreciate the kind of firepower having Martin Lewis supporting us would bring to bear on the West Bromwich.
http://www.moneysavingexpert.com/site/martin-lewis-biography
Member Since July 2013 - Comments: 264
10:32 PM, 23rd November 2013, About 12 years ago
Tweet him?
Member Since October 2013 - Comments: 134 - Articles: 1
10:57 PM, 23rd November 2013, About 12 years ago
Martin’s Money Saving Expert website did pick up on the issue on 23 September via Helen Knapman’s report, suggesting that he is at least aware of it.
Member Since January 2011 - Comments: 12193 - Articles: 1395
10:59 PM, 23rd November 2013, About 12 years ago
Already tweeted him several times, not giving up
Member Since July 2013 - Comments: 264
11:09 PM, 23rd November 2013, About 12 years ago
Martin L has a regular slot on GMTV & Lorraine Kelly LK today program
He’s also on ITV Daybreak.
Member Since November 2013 - Comments: 118
11:35 PM, 23rd November 2013, About 12 years ago
It maybe worth trying to get hold of Martin Lewis indirectly via his agent? Perhaps sell his agent the idea of bringing Martin on board this campaign which although designed for the benefit of landlords of West Bromwich BS, involves wider issues of lenders reneging on any mortgage guarantees or promises they make. If we can bring this to his attention, I don’t think Martin Lewis will need much convincing to support our cause. The hard part is getting his attention. Mark, I applaud your continuing efforts in trying to get hold of him.
We have to highlight the fact that this is an issue that affects all borrowers, including residential mortgage holders. The West Bromwich is attempting to play a game of divide and conquer. To play off homeowners and tenants against buy-to-let landlords who are often depicted as silver cane carrying, moustache twirling, Rachmanesque villains, dressed in top hats and black capes. However, lenders will not shy aware from targeting residential mortgage holders in the same way they have targeted landlords. Bank of Ireland, Manchester Building Society and Skipton Building Society have already proved this. Tenants will also not be spared as they will be made homeless when properties are repossessed because landlords can no longer afford this unjust and unlawful rate hike.
That is why it is so important the line is drawn here and no further.
Comments: 359
10:23 AM, 24th November 2013, About 12 years ago
Reply to the comment left by “The Man From Nowhere” at “23/11/2013 – 23:35“:
Even more crucial, to my mind and personally, than repossession and selling if people cannot afford the rate hike is the possibility of them repossessing because they can – according to the clause in the mythical booklet which it seems is worded in a COMPLETELY different way to that of any and every other mortgage provider! It’s that which is keeping me awake nights wondering what happens if they decide to test the waters with that little doozy. It’s too late once it’s done and someone is ruined for the courts to then say it was unethical even illegal.
Member Since June 2013 - Comments: 186
10:50 AM, 24th November 2013, About 12 years ago
Have a look at the piece on page 100 of Mail on Sunday by Jeff Prestridge. Very positive. He says within a short article “It is obvious that a lender that sells a mortgage on the back of a predetermined tracking rate, typically linked to the base rate, is being unfair if it then increases it”
Mark. I have put Jeff Prestridge on the Press List.
Member Since September 2013 - Comments: 35
12:46 PM, 24th November 2013, About 12 years ago
I have been following this post on Martin Lewis’s money saving expert website, but you can see the turn that the forum took:
http://forums.moneysavingexpert.com/showthread.php?t=4470099&page=56